Managing chronic spontaneous urticaria (hives) in primary care
Intended for healthcare professionals
Evidence and practice    

Managing chronic spontaneous urticaria (hives) in primary care

Emily Carne Advanced nurse practitioner and lead clinical nurse specialist, Immunology and allergy, University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff, Wales

Why you should read this article:
  • » To enable you to recognise the signs and symptoms of chronic spontaneous urticaria, and the effect the condition may have on patients’ quality of life

  • » To improve your awareness of the management and treatment options for chronic spontaneous urticaria in primary care and specialist services

  • » To understand the aspects of optimal nursing care for patients with chronic spontaneous urticaria

Chronic spontaneous urticaria is characterised by the spontaneous appearance of hives or wheals, and/or angioedema, lasting for at least six weeks. The condition may be associated with significant physical and emotional burden for patients. Nurses have an important role in the differential diagnosis of chronic spontaneous urticaria, assessing patients’ quality of life, providing advice on non-pharmacological measures, monitoring the patient’s response to treatment, and referring the patient for specialist care, where appropriate. This article describes the presentation, diagnosis and management of chronic spontaneous urticaria in primary care.

Nursing Standard. doi: 10.7748/ns.2018.e11198

Citation

Carne E (2018) Managing chronic spontaneous urticaria (hives) in primary care. Nursing Standard. doi: 10.7748/ns.2018.e11198

Peer review

This article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software

Correspondence

emily.carne@wales.nhs.uk

Conflict of interest

None declared

Acknowledgement

The author would like to thank 90TEN, a healthcare consultancy company, for their medical-writing assistance in the preparation of this article

Published online: 13 September 2018

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